Praying only for Others?

In the Collect of the Day last Sunday we prayed for other people. “O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy, be gracious to all who have gone astray from Your ways and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of Your Word.”

We acknowledged that God’s glory is to have mercy, on those who are straying from his way. We likely can name some straying.

However, a little word in that prayer is worthy of our attention. “Be gracious to ALL who have gone astray.” Consider that word “all.” Only a few minutes before we admitted, “we have sinned in thought, word, and deed?” We were also seeking His mercy and grace.

And if we thought we were generously only praying for the straying, we next ran into the Old Testament reading, Ex. 20:1-17, the Ten Commandments. Drat, done in again.

But we also heard Paul say in I Corinthians 1:18-31, that the word of the cross is the power of God to save. Though we don’t have anything to boast about to boost our status before God, we have Christ Jesus. Christ Jesus has put us right with God. He has made us holy and sinless. He has made us next of kin to God.

We completed the prayer, “Through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.” Let ALL God’s people say “Amen” to that.